ash wednesday Archives - Diocese of Venice

Ash Wednesday: Lenten Journey begins

Posted on February 15, 2024February 15, 2024 by Bob Reddy

The opening of the Lenten Season began with the traditional Ash Wednesday Mass, starting a journey which ends prior to the celebration of the Mass of the Lord’s Supper on Holy Thursday, March 28, 2024.

During this journey, one must take time to live the Lenten Season in a particular way, through prayer, fasting, and almsgiving, the three traditional disciplines of Lent.

On Ash Wednesday, the imposition of ashes is a solemn ritual that signals the beginning of the holy season of Lent. The ceremony is distinctive; there is no liturgical action like it throughout the entire liturgical year. Ashes come from a previous Palm Sunday. The palms are burned, the ashes collected and then crushed into a fine, sooty powder and placed into bowls, where they are blessed by the priest during the Ash Wednesday Mass after the homily. Then, in a Communion-like procession, people are invited to come forward, and the ashes are applied to each person’s forehead in the shape of a cross as the minister says either, “Turn away from sin and believe in the Gospel” (Mark 1:15), the usual prayer, or “Remember that you are dust, and unto dust you shall return” (Genesis 3:19), the older, more traditional invocation.

While the ashes marked on one’s forehead do not last very long, their purpose is to cleanse and purify our inner heart. Having a clean heart is a key part of living one’s faith life, and the precept of confessing grave sins at least once during the Lenten Season merits a reminder.

To facilitate this requirement, every Parish in the Diocese of Venice will be open with a confessor present 4 to 8 p.m., Friday, March 22, and 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday, March 23. Check with your local Parish for additional confession times or the availability of a Penance Service. These opportunities are made available so that the faithful may find ample opportunity to receive God’s Mercy in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.

Ash Wednesday: Lenten Journey begins

Posted on March 9, 2023March 9, 2023 by Bob Reddy

During this journey, one must take time to live the Lenten Season in a particular way, looking internally and answering the question: How can I be an ambassador for the message of Jesus Christ?

Bishop Frank J. Dewane addressed this issue at St. John XXIII Parish in Fort Myers where he celebrated Mass on Feb. 22. The Bishop spoke of putting a renewed focus on the pillars of the Lenten Season – prayer, fasting and almsgiving.

The Gospel reading for Ash Wednesday details how each of us “have to go about living our life – in the home, at work, and in society,” Bishop Dewane said. “There has to be a place for these three pillars. There is a tendency to think of them in an interior way, but we must let it well up from within. Christ is calling you and I as ambassadors, in a very visible pronounced way during the Lenten Season.”

As we prepare to celebrate the Paschal Mystery of our Faith, these three practices, approached seriously and in a spirit of penance, will ready us for the renewal of baptism at Easter.

Pray with Jesus in the desert to gain Faith. Realize you are not just watching Jesus; he gazes with love on you.
Fast with Jesus in the desert to learn hope. As we sit with Christ, receive the Spirit and hope that grows as our false material hopes wane.
Give alms to grow in love for the suffering of Jesus. We are to see Christ in others. What we do for them, we do for Jesus.

Family Rosary Across America

Also taking place on Ash Wednesday, Bishop Dewane was a special guest of Relevant Radio—the largest Catholic radio network—which hosted a live national broadcast of the Family Rosary Across America in conjunction with Ave Maria University and Ave Maria Parish. The special broadcast, hosted by Father Francis J. Hoffman (best known as “Father Rocky”), executive director and CEO of Relevant Radio, was intended to help the faithful across the country kick-off their Lenten Journey in a positive way. During the broadcast from the Parish Church, Bishop Dewane led the praying of the rosary, joined by Father Rocky and students from Ave Maria University.

Opportunity for Confession in Diocese

The precept of confessing grave sins and receiving Holy Communion at least once during the Lenten Season indeed merits recalling for all the Faithful. To facilitate this requirement, all Parishes in the Diocese of Venice will be open with a confessor present so that the faithful will find ample opportunity to receive God’s Mercy in the Sacrament of Confession from 4-8 p.m., Friday, March 31, and 9 a.m.-noon, Saturday, April 1. Please check with your local Parish for additional reconciliation times.

Parishes frequently add additional times for the Sacrament during Lent, including during Parish Lenten Missions Retreats. In addition, Parishes often combine to have an evening prayer services in a region with additional priests present to offer the Sacrament of Reconciliation. Please visit https://dioceseofvenice.org/find-a-parish/ to find a Parish.

Lenten journey begins

Posted on March 3, 2022 by Bob Reddy

Fasting, almsgiving, and prayer are the three traditional disciplines of Lent, but we are reminded to do these things privately because the Lord knows us and what we are doing.

Grand displays are not what the Lord wants, explained Father Robert Tatman, Parochial Vicar of St. Jude Parish in Sarasota. The clear example of this is represented in the ashes marked on one’s forehead to open Lent on Ash Wednesday, March 2, 2022.

“They don’t last very long, but it is not something we want to wear on the outside, just to be seen,” Father Tatman said. “We want it to cleanse and purify our inner heart.”

In addition to opening the Lenten Season, which concludes on Holy Thursday, April 14, on Ash Wednesday the faithful across the Diocese of Venice joined in fasting and prayer for peace in Ukraine as called for by Pope Francis.

As Bishop Frank J. Dewane noted in a letter to the faithful on March 1, “Our Catholic Faith calls each of us to care for those in need, and, at this time in particular, for those who are suffering in the wake of this terrible tragedy.”

In the letter, Bishop Dewane stated that donations made to the collection on Ash Wednesday will support charitable relief for the Ukraine and assist in providing humanitarian aid, as well as necessary recovery efforts.

For those not prepared for the collection, donations may be sent to the Diocese of Venice, with “Ukraine” indicated in the memo or note line at the following address: Diocese of Venice in Florida, Ukraine Relief, 1000 Pinebrook Road, Venice, FL 34285.

As the Lenten Season progresses, the precept of confessing grave sins and receiving Holy Communion at least once during the Lenten Season merits a reminder to all. To facilitate this requirement, every Parish in the Diocese of Venice will be open with a confessor present from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m., on Friday, April 8, and from 9 a.m. to noon, Saturday, April 9. Check with your local Parish for additional confession times or the availability of a Penance Service. These opportunities are made available so that the faithful may find ample opportunity to receive God’s Mercy in the Sacrament of Reconciliation during the Lenten Season.